Everywhere you look there's a branding expert. Ad agencies often tout their "Brand Strategy" or "Brand Development'' services as if they were the Holy Grail. They'll advise you that strong branding is essential to your success. They'll help you design your logo, choose your color palette and pick your typefaces. They’ll even give you a handy-dandy branding guide (that no one will ever read). They'll make sure your brand guidelines are enforced on everything from signage to social media. They'll ensure that all the colors match (because to many, branding=colors). And once it’s in place, you can relax and somehow all this “Brand Awareness” will propel business right to you. The magic of branding is all you need, they’ll say.
They're wrong. Yes, branding is an important part of driving business with both new and existing clients. However, branding isn't enough anymore. Making sure the consumer is "aware" is a weak approach based more on hope than a solid position. The consumer is bombarded by an onslaught of digital content and dozens of other brand strategies. All while navigating a pandemic and under financial strain. Awareness isn't going to cut it when it comes to them actively making the choice to buy something or spend on a service, product or experience.
Your business needs to be positioned in the consumer's mind. Solidly in place. When they think of your type of product or service, yours stands out, deeply rooted in their mind. The ultimate success is when your business name replaces the general name of the item - "Give me a Kleenex" instead of "Give me a Tissue" The most obvious and prevalent today is "Google it". This is the Holy Grail of advertising. This ensures success.
It's not easy. Brands from years ago like Tide and Kleenex were in a much less crowded market. They firmly established their positioning early on. Sure they spent a substantial amount of money to achieve that (and had stellar, beloved products) But those were simpler times. In today's market, competition has never been more fierce. Yes, some businesses were not able to withstand the shutdowns. But the ones still standing are lean, mean and more driven than ever to survive. Now, rising above the competition is a necessity.
One can't just spend money on branding and social media and expect solid positioning to happen as a result. A concerted effort, driven by an experienced ad agency is key. Of course proper branding is a key part of this, however the road map is different for each company. You need a team of designers, marketers and visionaries, that understand your business, to establish that solid position in the consumer's mind. Anyone can pick colors and typefaces for you. You can do that yourself. However, when it comes to positioning, you need the best and boldest.
Contact us today to discuss a plan for your positioning.